


Puppy Therapy

by SunlightOnTheWater



Series: Ruby and Sam [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Gen, Meg and Sam are best friends, Ruby is trying to help, Sam Has Issues, Sam Winchester's Demonic Powers, Sam gets a dog, Sam is a demon with a human soul, Strange Friendships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-17
Updated: 2014-06-17
Packaged: 2018-02-04 20:48:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1792717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SunlightOnTheWater/pseuds/SunlightOnTheWater
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After a detailed discussion with an angel and a demon, Ruby decides to get Sam a puppy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Puppy Therapy

**Author's Note:**

> So this is a testament to how out of order this particular verse is going to be written because nobody but me knows what happened to Ruby or Sam or what's going on between Sam and Dean or even how Meg, Ruby, and Anna became friends, let alone how Sam has a house with Ruby. Eventually those will get written. Right now, what you have is a bunch of chatting and Sam getting a puppy. That's honestly it. 
> 
> I don't have a beta reader, haven't for a couple years since my one on FF.net vanished into thin air, so any mistakes are mine. If anyone wants to beta read the pieces of this, give me a holler and we'll talk. Enjoy!

Ruby parked the rusted red truck outside the small cafe, grinning at the cherry red Camaro parked next to her, and slipped out, locking the ancient vehicle behind her. Rain battered her, instantly plastering her dark hair to her face, and she stepped inside, grinning as she joined another dark haired young woman and one with bright red hair. "You're late," Meg informed her with a grin, pushing a full and steaming cup of coffee towards her.

"I know," Ruby said, glancing around before adding, "Sam had a bad night. He woke up screaming and I couldn't persuade him to tell me what it was about."

"That boy has issues," Meg said with a shake of her head but Ruby knew the other demon didn't mean anything bad by it. Meg and Sam, surprisingly, were incredibly close. They chatted once a week, whether Meg came into the fortress Sam and Ruby called home or they talked over the phone. Meg had possessed Sam once, a long time ago, and understood him almost better than Ruby did. Furthermore, because of the blood Azazel had fed the souled demon, she could claim kinship with him. Ever since Dean had informed the hunting community that Sam was a demon, the youngest Winchester had experienced no contact with his brother and was grateful for the familial relationship between he and Meg.

"He has been through much," Anna added. "It is only natural that he struggles with what has been done to him."

"I didn't say it wasn't natural," Meg replied with a shrug. Anna was the oddball in their little group. She was the only angel in their little female trio, although female was entirely subjective for the angel, and she was mostly unbothered by Ruby and Meg being demons.

"I just don't know what to do," Ruby said hopelessly. Anna's face creased in sympathy and Meg opened her mouth to say something before they were interrupted by a waitress bustling over to them.

"Sorry for the wait dear," the older woman apologized. "What can I get for you?"

"I'll have the blueberry pancakes please," Ruby ordered politely and the woman scribbled it down.

"I'll have it out as soon as I can," the woman said and then bustled off. It was too early in the morning for french fries, Ruby had gotten a strange look last time she'd ordered them at nine in the morning here, but blueberry pancakes were almost as good. They weren't near as good as the ones with the cinnamon apple sauce Sam sometimes cooked for supper if it was a really good day.

"Get him a dog," Meg said the instant the woman was out of hearing range. Anna tilted her head, puzzled, and Ruby just stared at the other demon. "I'm serious. I've been in his head, I've seen what it's like, and I know what he likes. Sammy's never had a dog but he's always been a dog person. They adore him. Honest to God truth." She held up her right hand like she was being sworn into a court and Anna smiled wryly.

"A dog," Ruby said speculatively, considering. She didn't mind the fluffy little ones but the big ones made her wary. Still, she figured that if she was going to get a dog Sam's OCD and other quirks would insist that it be practical for hunting later. That meant a bigger dog.

"You wanted a solution," Meg said with a shrug. "I gave it to you."

"Okay, okay," Ruby said, holding her hands up in surrender. "I've got it." Meg grinned and Anna laughed lightly. "So how goes things in Heaven?" she asked the angel.

"Well enough," Anna replied, silencing when the waitress returned with Ruby's pancakes and then continuing once the woman was out of earshot. "Michael and Raphael have called Zachariah to task for what he has done and everything is falling back into order. That Lucifer did not rise eight months ago can only be considered a good thing." The demons both nodded, knowing that having many angels swarming the earth in preparation for an apocalypse had not been a good thing. Then Anna asked, "How about Hell?"

"It's all in the politics," Meg said with a wicked grin as Ruby bit into her pancakes. "Crowley has put in a bid for kingship, the pompous upstart. I'm not too worried about him; he'll be easily persuaded to step down if I offer him a good enough deal and Daddy dearest was the king of making good deals. It's Alastair that has me worried." Ruby shuddered slightly at the name, a thousand terrible memories trying to burst free. She pushed them down forcefully. "He's been lurking quietly for some time but I have a suspicion that my peace will be at an end. It'll only make things interesting though. I mean, obviously, I have the best heritage unless Sam decides he wants the job." Meg didn't have to add that Sam wasn't likely to take the position even if it offered him everything he ever wanted. "How is Sammy boy?"

"Some days are better than others," Ruby said, thinking about the spotless fortress of a home she and Sam lived in. "His OCD is still pretty strong, same with the nightmares, but the insomnia is finally letting up. I think the fact that he hasn't been actively hunted or hunting for six months is helping." She was slowly chipping away at his self-hatred and lack of self-confidence too but that was moving at a slower pace than anything else. His feelings of worthlessness had deep roots and Ruby was hard pressed sometimes not to want to go after the ones who had started them.

"That boy needs hugs," Meg said, which was an odd statement for a demon but not an odd statement for Meg who had seemed to resolve to hug Sam as much as possible. "And a puppy."

"All right already," Ruby said, exasperated. "I'll go look at puppies after we finish here."

"Good," Meg said, sounding satisfied with herself, and Anna laughed at both of them. The conversation flowed easily, they did this about once a month since Ruby had been able to leave the hospital Sam had placed her in on life support, and since she had felt comfortable leaving Sam alone. They talked about the weather, which was dismal, and their lives for an hour and then left, Meg paying because it was her turn.

Once they separated Ruby headed for the local pet store, stepping inside to the sounds of birds chirping and dogs barking. As she made her way through the tangle of cages her eyes fell on a bundle of excited, fluffy puppies racing around after one another. She smiled, amused by their antics, and when she leaned over the cage one of them with grey, white, and black fur and bright blue eyes scrambled over to her, wagging its tail. "That's Sadie," a female voice said and Ruby turned to see a pretty blonde teenager smiling at her. The young woman was wearing the uniform of the pet store and her tag proclaimed her name to be Brittnie. "She normally doesn't come right up to people but she seems to like you."

"Hi sweetheart," Ruby cooed to [Sadie](http://imagesofpuppies.org/australian-shepherd-puppies.html/blue-merle-australian-shepherd-puppies) and the puppy wagged its tail cheerfully at her.

"She's an Australian Shepherd so she'll get bigger fast," Brittnie told her. "And she's about seven weeks old." Ruby carefully scooped up the puppy and was instantly showered with puppy kisses over every inch of skin that the little fuzzball could reach. It was an easy decision, from that moment forward, to get the puppy. She drove home with Sadie sitting in the passenger seat cheerfully gnawing on the towel Brittnie had given her to transfer the pup home. It was a peaceful drive, even with the rain spattering on the truck, but Ruby felt herself growing tenser and tenser the closer she got to home. This morning had not been a good morning for Sam and she hadn't wanted to leave him alone but he had insisted. Now she worried that he might have done something rash, like taking his own life.

She parked rather messily in the driveway, they didn't have a garage, and picked the puppy up before hurrying inside. The TV was on low, the voices recognizable as Alton Brown which mean he might be watching one of their recorded episodes of _Cutthroat Kitchen_ , and when she came around the corner she resisted breathing out a sigh of relief. Sam was wrapped up in an old quilt Bobby Singer had sent over, something his wife Karen had made that he'd never used again, watching the competition. "Hi sweetheart," she said and he looked over at her, gracing her a smile complete with dimples. She loved that smile. "I brought you a present." He looked puzzled, as if no one had really given him a gift before, and Ruby gently transferred the wiggling bundle of fuzz to Sam's arms. "Her name is Sadie." Instantly Sadie was licking his chin and neck, tail whipping back and forth like mad, and Sam started laughing with pure delight. Watching the two of them settle on the couch to watch television together, the puppy curled up in Sam's lap as happy as could be, Ruby decided Meg was right; Sam really did need a dog. And maybe the dog wouldn't fix everything, maybe it wouldn't fix anything at all, but it made Sam happy and that was worth everything in the world.


End file.
